All Things Thrifty Giveaway!!

The site that got me started me back into the world of crafting (though SHE does so much more) is All Things Thrifty:

All Things Thrifty

And Brooke at All Things Thrifty is doing a Silhouette Give-away!!! Check out her post today to try for it! I did!

http://www.allthingsthrifty.com/2011/01/giveaway-silhouette-sd-machine.html

Decorative Notebooks

Decorate a notebook for yourself or for a gift.

I have been busy with a number of new projects, but I probably won't be able to post them for a week because I am going out of town. My mom has been sick and I'm finally getting to visit her. I'm going to try to upload what I can, when I can. But this is a project you can do with your kids even if you have only a few minutes. It is actually a terrific project for adults, as you can see by the links below.

You can see our finished project if you scroll to the end of this post.

I am thinking about taking some of these supplies onto the plane to keep me busy!

First, here are some links to some grown up designs:

Instructables

Joanna Campbell's blog post

from Blissfully Content - a fabric cover

Linda Martinelli

You can make this as simple or as elaborate as you like!

You just need to pick up a Composition Notebook, cover it in paper, and get started. You can decorate with scrap booking supplies, rubber stamping, or with shapes you cut out yourself from the paper you have. I have seen people sew on it, use fabric, and use paint. There is no limit!

You can find many creative examples of this online, some very simple and other very elaborate. We just traced the notebook onto the pretty paper and cut it out.

You could add some colorful duct tape from the craft store to cover the binding! You can see that we did not...

Have fun!

Desk Accessories for MY NEW JOB!

I didn't mention this last week, but for my birthday I also received a new lunch bag for my NEW JOB! This was so exciting because my birthday was the day I sealed the deal for the new position. I'm not sure what my desk or the office will look like, but in the meantime I am preparing to make some desk decorations to make my office my own. I'd like to use scrapbook papers and items I have around the house. I have been looking at some blogs for some ideas and here are some ideas I'm considering...

Photo Block

I love this photo block, and I love the color combinations that Amy Anderson used. I am a thinking this might be too large for an office desk, but its so cute I'm going to make it for the house.

Just Believe Desk Set Class

These items are exactly the type that I was thinking of - but the colors are a little too muted for me. I am going to try to make this but will go with bright contrasting colors OR earthy tones. Christie Wallace from Australia showcased this set on her site tonight and was even hosting a scrap party to make them. Too bad I live a little too far away...

Desk Calendar

I love the colors in this calendar. In fact, I love this calendar. The author also has a terrifically detailed tutorial. I am so glad I have a few weeks before I start my new job, because I should have just enough time to get these projects done! After work, of course.

I'll post what I make here on the site.

Now I'm off to keep browsing for more office decor ideas...

Oreo Cookie Bites

~ KIDS in the KITCHEN ~

Plus: More Adventures with my Magic Bullet!

I have a new recipe I'd like to share. I spotted this in a magazine last weekend and I can NOT remember where I saw it, or I would happily give credit. The recipe is very simple and AMAZING. Its also fun to make with KIDS!

Oreo Cookie Bites:

* 8oz softened cream cheese

* one package of Oreo cookies

* Milk Chocolate Chips

* White Chocolate Chips

Prepare your work area. You will need to place waxed paper onto two cookie sheets. You'll also need either a plastic bag and mallet or a food processor.

Crush the Oreo Cookies. I used my magic bullet, trying both blades, but it took some time and didn't go as smoothly as I'd hoped. If you don't have a food processor, I would recommend putting the cookies into a plastic Ziploc bag and crush them with a mallet. I used the Magic Bullet because I wanted to be sure the cookies were finely crushed. I don't really know if it was worth using that particular machine to blend them. Either pressing the button or crushing them in a bag, the kids will like this part.

After you have crushed the cookies, blend them with the softened cream cheese. You can use a wooden spoon or your food processor for this part. Both you AND the kids can do this.

I have a picture to show you of the crushed Oreo cookies mixed with the cream cheese but really, it doesn't look that great. You don't really want to see it. It looks like mud. But I assure you it tastes great!


Now for this step you will find that your kids either love or hate to do this: Use a spoon to take a small amount of the cookie mixture from the bowl. Using your hands, form small bite-sized balls out of the cookie mixture and place them on the cookie sheets. Place the sheets into the freezer to sit for a bit while you prepare the melted chocolate. Your hands WILL get messy!

Wash your hands for this next step. This step involves heat so an adult should do this. Melt the chocolate chips. You can do it on the stove or in the microwave. I melted the milk chocolate chips on the stove but melted the white chocolate chips in the microwave wave. Even food cooked in the microwave can give a severe burn, so be sure to be careful! Plus, overcooking chocolate is never a good idea.

One you have the chocolate melted, dip the cookie balls into the chocolate and allow them to sit on the cookie sheets until each ball is coated with milk chocolate. Melt the white chocolate and use a spoon or a fork to drizzle it on top of the chocolate covered Oreo balls. The white chocolate drizzle is a fun thing for the kids to do.

Place the cookie sheets back into the freezer or into the fridge until the chocolate is firm. After the chocolate has hardened, you can remove them from the cookie sheets and store them in the fridge for a while or even freeze them for a few months.

Enjoy!

Faux Flowers (pom poms) Part II

As promised, here is the creative way my kids make pom poms. I'm a little disappointed that I never thought to use this simple technique. My only defense is that it is more challenging to make various sized poms using this idea.

Choose your yarn.

Holding one end of the yarn between your fingers or your thumb and finger, use that to secure the yarn and wrap the rest of it around your fingers.

And wrap it around.

And wrap.

Pull it off of your hand. Pinch the two sides of the ring of yarn to form a figure-eight like the one below. Take another piece of string and tie it around the middle of the yarn. Tie it tightly!

Once tied, use your scissors to cut both ends of the string bundle. You'll need to fluff up the yarn and definitely use scissors to make the pom-pom even all the way around. You can see this one is a little hairy! Trim away to make it round...

Voila! Pom-poms!

Have fun!

Faux Flowers (pom poms) Part I

In the February 2011 edition of Country Living magazine, crafter/writer/stylist Lauren De Bellis is highlighted on page 64 in the Idea Notebook section.

Pom Pom Flowers

Click on the picture and you can see the details on the Country Living website. There they recommend buying pom-pom makers to make the flowers.

My 19 year old daughter, still home from college, saw this in the magazine and wanted to make them. So here in our kitchen I'll show you two ways to make pom-poms without the cost and wait of buying several pom-pom makers.

Today, my way.

When I was little I lived in a place where the marsh would freeze all winter long, and I spent my time skating. I made hundreds of pom-poms using this method throughout my childhood. You can use yarn with variegated color, use one color yarn, or you could use two colors of yarn and end up with a pom-pom that is, for example, blue on one half and yellow on the other. You might have your kids use their school colors or their favorite team colors.

You'll need some pliable cardboard. I find cereal boxes are nice to use.

Cut out two circles of matching circumference. Cut a small hole out of the center of each, so they look like matching donuts.

Holding both cardboard circles together as one, take the end of a length of yarn and begin to wrap through the hole and around the outer edge, and back through the center again. If you have to change yarn, make sure the yarn is long enough to go over the top edge. Cut off the extra length, then start another piece.

Continue doing this until the entire circle is covered with yarn. The thicker the wraps, the fluffier the pom-pom. You can just keep wrapping as many times as you like.

Once the donut shape is covered, keep your finger or thumb in the hole as you begin the next step. This part can be tricky.

Take your scissors and begin to cut the yarn along the outer edge. After the first cut, your scissors can go right into the space between the two circles. This will make it easier to cut the yarn. Holding tightly, cut the yarn around the entire circle. You may have to wedge your scissors in a bit and cut a few pieces of yarn before the scissors will fit in between the two pieces of cardboard.

Still holding the donut shape carefully, take a longer piece of yarn and wrap it between the 2 donuts, pulling it into the edge where you cut the yarn. Pull it tightly and tie it.

At this point you can remove the cardboard donut. You can cut it off or you can try to remove it and re-use it for another pom-pom of the same size.

Now you have a pom-pom! You'll want to trim it up to make it even. You can use the ends from the length of yarn to tie it to your skates, or if you want to try the Country Living craft and make some faux flowers, you're ready!


Tomorrow one of my daughters will show you their innovative version. Stay tuned...

Birthday gift!

My new sewing machine!

I received this machine for my birthday on Friday!!!! I'm so excited!! I didn't have a lot of time to play with it this weekend but it is incredible! If you can't tell from all of the exclamation points, I'm pretty happy! I'm not an exceptional sewer but I have wanted for YEARS to be able to sew with more ease than my 1950's Singer will allow. Look at what prompted this:

This is the top edge of a holiday valence I sewed for a room in my house... You will notice there is NO thread there. I had to buy hooks to hang my valence because I couldn't create a rod pocket! It looked okay because I was able to sew a hem in the fabric, even though the thread tension was so crazy that it knotted up at many intervals. But the clips saved it (and my sanity).

My hubby HATES to give appliances for birthdays or holidays. He has NEVER done it before. And he considers a sewing machne to be an appliance. But prior to Christmas I was making this very valence for our kitchen and had some trouble with my machine. You might be able to imagine my frustration! But I perservered and the illusion worked. No thanks to my old machine!

So hubster took note of my pain and filed it away for future reference, and now, Happy Birthday!! This new one practically cuts out and sews by itself! Its crazy wonderful. Last night I quickly sewed a cape for my 20 year old daughter. I used suit fabric. It is a nice light weight, though I debated using it last night because I thought it might need a lining. However, I couldn't wait, I was so anxious to sew on my NEW TOY!

I just used a messy zig-zag stitch for the bottom, not really being too careful about placement. This was mostly because I was just playing with the machine. When I realized how amazing the machine is, I decided to be a little more attentive and I seamed along the edge. I regretted my playful zig-zag stitch when I saw how beautiful the seaming worked. But my daughter still loves it. I sent her pictures last night. She left for college yesterday but will be home for an event in 2 weeks, so I'll take a shot of her wearing it. The plan was to use a frog closure, and she chose 2 small frogs instead of one larger one:

But now that the coat is done I'm thinking maybe a large button will be even better. Any suggestions will be appreciated!